It's B-52s Meets Invasion of the Body Snatchers, as Psychedelic Harp Rocker Chick ERIN HILL Preps Trailblazing Science Fiction Video Album
Girl Inventor Set For October 10th; First Video Single Premieres Today for Twilight Zone- Inspired “Giant Mushrooms"
Space Hippies and Vulcans Love the Harp—You Will, Too!
Every once in a while, an artist comes along with a wonderfully twisted perspective, and we get to experience their innovation as our entertainment. Today, psychedelic singer, harpist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, screenwriter, actor and retro geek Erin Hill reveals the first clip from her upcoming science fiction video album, Girl Inventor. Like Bjork, a-ha, Devo, Tim Burton and David Bowie, Hill's artistic vision is witty and slightly askew.
Girl Inventor, set for October 10th release, is the debut CD by Erin Hill & her Psychedelic Harp. She comments: “Lyrically, most of my songs are like little Tales of the Unexpected, and that's what gave me the idea to make Girl Inventor a video album㬆 songs, 10 sci-fi music videos, each music video like a little four-minute Twilight Zone episode."
Hill has played the harp since the ripe age of eight, and has long noticed its prominent role in the science fiction that's helped to shape her internal landscape: “From the time I was little, I noticed that where there was sci-fi, there was often a harp...Let's take Star Trek - there's harp all over that show! And what instrument does Spock play? Why, the Vulcan Harp! The Adventures of Superman, Val Lewton films, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Wall-E.... The harp has that strange, sparkling, beautiful, mysterious quality that just fits with falling through space, time travel, the stars and constellations... and of course, space hippies and Vulcans."
As for her inspirations: “Story-wise, I'm a huge sci-fi geek. Star Trek is my first love, then The Twilight Zone, and, of course, Buffy, Angel, and Firefly. Musically, I've probably been most inspired/influenced by David Bowie, Devo, and The Beatles. For films, a few favorites are Silent Running, which if you haven't seen, you should go rent it right away—it's still just as relevant today as it was in 1972, The Day the Earth Stood Still (original), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (I actually appreciate all three versions), Minority Report, Children of Men, I could go on and on! Literature-wise, since I first started to read, I've devoured classic sci-fi, with the short story being my favorite form—Theodore Sturgeon, Ray Bradbury, Philip K. Dick (exception to the short story rule), etc. And I collect sci-fi mags from the 1930's through the 1960's, my faves being Galaxy and Astounding Science Fiction (for reading and for cover art), then others mainly for the cover art."
A Kickstarter campaign will be launched soon to help finance Hill's project—"I wouldn't be able to do a sci-fi video album on my own, and it's too great an idea to just let go—just around the time I got the idea for the video album, I found out about Kickstarter through Sundance, since I'm a two-time Sundance alum, and I realized—it IS possible! The sci-fi video album can happen!" More details on Hill's Kickstarter campaign will be announced soon.
While the bulk of the upcoming video album will focus on Hill's obsessive knowledge of and love for science fiction, one track will have a more political edge: the second video single, “Lookout, Science," shines a light on the smackdown between religion and science - look for the clip to be released next month.
Erin Hill has the last word on how to describe her Girl Inventor project: “It's not a breadbox. It's bigger than that."
More about Erin Hill
Erin Hill is a singer, harpist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, screenwriter, actor, and science fiction geek. Radio 3, BBC says “Beautiful! Voice exquisite, words telling tales everyone wants to hear." She's had a #1 album on the Billboard world chart and in the Top 40 on the Independent chart (2009). She's a singer, songwriter and musician on the Dream Jam Band's major label debut on EMI (2010). She's played with Kanye West, moby, Enya, a- ha, Cyndi Lauper, Levon Helm, etc. and has played solo at The Royal Albert Hall. She is also known as The Pretty White Girl on Comedy Central's Chappelle's Show.
With electric harp as the lead instrument, Erin plays and sings with her band, Erin Hill & her Psychedelic Harp, which includes vocals, harp, bass, drums, and pedal steel. The music is beautiful and psychedelic pop: “Hill is a songwriting angel... with tracks that fascinate and mesmerize the audience." (The Louisville Eccentric Observer). Erin Hill & her Psychedelic Harp recently returned from Spain, where they played the 2011 Dia de la Musica Festival in Madrid.
In the film Clear Blue Tuesday (2010), she is a composer, screenwriter, and actor. The New York Times says: “Erin Hill, as a giddy, harp-playing Trekker, is a standout.... The best and funniest scene in the film is Ms. Hill's...." And from Variety: “A memorable number is “Reckless," penned by Erin Hill and delivered by her character, Etta, a sci-fi soundtrack- session harpist and one of the film's few solidly intriguing personalities."
On the Celtic side, Erin's 2009 album with her group Four Celtic Voices, Four Leaf Clover, hit #1 on the Billboard World Music chart, charted in multiple Top Ten Heatseeker charts and in the Top 40 on the Independent chart.
She is also in The Dream Jam Band, whose major label debut is now out on EMI (August 2010), produced by Rick Chertoff (Cyndi Lauper, Joan Osborne, Ron Howard's The Grinch, etc.). As “Erin the Red," she plays bass, harp, keys, sings, and is a songwriter and arranger in the band.
In 2008, Erin toured with and opened for a-ha in Europe and London, where she played solo at the Royal Albert Hall (see the a-ha.com interview with Erin on a-ha's official site at http://a-ha.com/news/articles/behind-the-harp/.
She has sung and played with Enya, Cyndi Lauper, Kanye West (Live Earth, MTV, BET, etc.), moby, Joan Osborne, Randy Newman, Dave Chappelle, Marshall Crenshaw, Martha Wainwright, Duncan Sheik, The Smithereens, Savoy, Julee Cruise, John Flansburgh (of They Might Be Giants), Lenny Pickett (of Saturday Night Live), and Levon Helm (of The Band). She plays regularly with Will Lee (of David Letterman), Jimmy Vivino (of Conan O'Brien), G.E. Smith (of Saturday Night Live), and Garth Hudson (of The Band).
Erin is known at the Ritz-Carlton on Central Park South in NYC for her rock 'n' roll arrangements on solo harp, playing (and singing) everything from Bowie, The Beatles, Stevie Wonder and Neil Young to Aerosmith, The Police, Prince and Avril Lavigne.
On the silver screen, Erin played Sandra Mescal in the Tim Robbins' film Cradle Will Rock and appears on the soundtrack along with PJ Harvey and Eddie Vedder. Erin has sung solo on HBO's The Chris Rock Show as the Hippie Chick, and on Comedy Central's Chappelle's Show as The Pretty White Girl who sings Dave's thoughts. Erin was in the original Broadway casts of Titanic, Cabaret, and Urinetown and has twice been part of the Sundance Theater Lab in Utah, originating the role of Ilse in Spring Awakening with Duncan Sheik, and as musical director for Lil's 90th (also at the Long Wharf Theater in 2010) with Jo Bonney. In 2010-11 Erin toured with the Lincoln Center production of South Pacific as harpist and pianist.
Erin is a songwriter and screenwriter on the upcoming sci-fi film Fade To White, which Erin describes as “On the Beach meets Saturday Night Live." Her songs can be heard in several other films, including Spent, Bad Bride, and American Desi. She signed The Buddy Scott Trio to her label and their songs can be heard in the MGM film A Guy Thing. As a voice- over artist she's been heard on commercials from Coca-Cola, Match.com and Walmart to Play-Doh and Dunkin' Donuts.
Erin is the harpist on the new soundtrack for The Fantasticks, on Martha Wainwright's acclaimed debut album Martha Wainwright, on the original Broadway cast album of Sam Mendes' Cabaret, on the tour of the Lincoln Center South Pacific, in various commercials (Dunkin' Donuts, etc.), and on MTV2's Wonder Showzen.
Erin studied voice with Marni Nixon and at L'Ecole Hindemith in Switzerland and has played Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. She was a founding member of the band Wicked Felina with G.E. Smith (of Saturday Night Live), where she was a co-writer, co-singer, and played harp, guitar, flute, accordion, and hammered dulcimer. Erin's played drums with Martha & the Vandellas; she's a classically trained pianist and plays keyboards, as well as percussion, guitar, and vocals for Will Lee and Jimmy Vivino in The Fab Faux; and she plays saxophone and flute (and harp) on the Sam Mendes Cabaret soundtrack on RCA.
When playing live, Erin likes to sprinkle in a few covers at her gigs, ranging from David Bowie's “Space Oddity" or The Beatles “I'm Only Sleeping," to the Celtic classic “Danny Boy" or a Puccini aria, which she sings probably even better than The Doctor on Voyager ;-).
Girl Inventor Set For October 10th; First Video Single Premieres Today for Twilight Zone- Inspired “Giant Mushrooms"
Space Hippies and Vulcans Love the Harp—You Will, Too!
Every once in a while, an artist comes along with a wonderfully twisted perspective, and we get to experience their innovation as our entertainment. Today, psychedelic singer, harpist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, screenwriter, actor and retro geek Erin Hill reveals the first clip from her upcoming science fiction video album, Girl Inventor. Like Bjork, a-ha, Devo, Tim Burton and David Bowie, Hill's artistic vision is witty and slightly askew.
Girl Inventor, set for October 10th release, is the debut CD by Erin Hill & her Psychedelic Harp. She comments: “Lyrically, most of my songs are like little Tales of the Unexpected, and that's what gave me the idea to make Girl Inventor a video album㬆 songs, 10 sci-fi music videos, each music video like a little four-minute Twilight Zone episode."
Hill has played the harp since the ripe age of eight, and has long noticed its prominent role in the science fiction that's helped to shape her internal landscape: “From the time I was little, I noticed that where there was sci-fi, there was often a harp...Let's take Star Trek - there's harp all over that show! And what instrument does Spock play? Why, the Vulcan Harp! The Adventures of Superman, Val Lewton films, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Wall-E.... The harp has that strange, sparkling, beautiful, mysterious quality that just fits with falling through space, time travel, the stars and constellations... and of course, space hippies and Vulcans."
As for her inspirations: “Story-wise, I'm a huge sci-fi geek. Star Trek is my first love, then The Twilight Zone, and, of course, Buffy, Angel, and Firefly. Musically, I've probably been most inspired/influenced by David Bowie, Devo, and The Beatles. For films, a few favorites are Silent Running, which if you haven't seen, you should go rent it right away—it's still just as relevant today as it was in 1972, The Day the Earth Stood Still (original), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (I actually appreciate all three versions), Minority Report, Children of Men, I could go on and on! Literature-wise, since I first started to read, I've devoured classic sci-fi, with the short story being my favorite form—Theodore Sturgeon, Ray Bradbury, Philip K. Dick (exception to the short story rule), etc. And I collect sci-fi mags from the 1930's through the 1960's, my faves being Galaxy and Astounding Science Fiction (for reading and for cover art), then others mainly for the cover art."
A Kickstarter campaign will be launched soon to help finance Hill's project—"I wouldn't be able to do a sci-fi video album on my own, and it's too great an idea to just let go—just around the time I got the idea for the video album, I found out about Kickstarter through Sundance, since I'm a two-time Sundance alum, and I realized—it IS possible! The sci-fi video album can happen!" More details on Hill's Kickstarter campaign will be announced soon.
While the bulk of the upcoming video album will focus on Hill's obsessive knowledge of and love for science fiction, one track will have a more political edge: the second video single, “Lookout, Science," shines a light on the smackdown between religion and science - look for the clip to be released next month.
Erin Hill has the last word on how to describe her Girl Inventor project: “It's not a breadbox. It's bigger than that."
More about Erin Hill
Erin Hill is a singer, harpist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, screenwriter, actor, and science fiction geek. Radio 3, BBC says “Beautiful! Voice exquisite, words telling tales everyone wants to hear." She's had a #1 album on the Billboard world chart and in the Top 40 on the Independent chart (2009). She's a singer, songwriter and musician on the Dream Jam Band's major label debut on EMI (2010). She's played with Kanye West, moby, Enya, a- ha, Cyndi Lauper, Levon Helm, etc. and has played solo at The Royal Albert Hall. She is also known as The Pretty White Girl on Comedy Central's Chappelle's Show.
With electric harp as the lead instrument, Erin plays and sings with her band, Erin Hill & her Psychedelic Harp, which includes vocals, harp, bass, drums, and pedal steel. The music is beautiful and psychedelic pop: “Hill is a songwriting angel... with tracks that fascinate and mesmerize the audience." (The Louisville Eccentric Observer). Erin Hill & her Psychedelic Harp recently returned from Spain, where they played the 2011 Dia de la Musica Festival in Madrid.
In the film Clear Blue Tuesday (2010), she is a composer, screenwriter, and actor. The New York Times says: “Erin Hill, as a giddy, harp-playing Trekker, is a standout.... The best and funniest scene in the film is Ms. Hill's...." And from Variety: “A memorable number is “Reckless," penned by Erin Hill and delivered by her character, Etta, a sci-fi soundtrack- session harpist and one of the film's few solidly intriguing personalities."
On the Celtic side, Erin's 2009 album with her group Four Celtic Voices, Four Leaf Clover, hit #1 on the Billboard World Music chart, charted in multiple Top Ten Heatseeker charts and in the Top 40 on the Independent chart.
She is also in The Dream Jam Band, whose major label debut is now out on EMI (August 2010), produced by Rick Chertoff (Cyndi Lauper, Joan Osborne, Ron Howard's The Grinch, etc.). As “Erin the Red," she plays bass, harp, keys, sings, and is a songwriter and arranger in the band.
In 2008, Erin toured with and opened for a-ha in Europe and London, where she played solo at the Royal Albert Hall (see the a-ha.com interview with Erin on a-ha's official site at http://a-ha.com/news/articles/behind-the-harp/.
She has sung and played with Enya, Cyndi Lauper, Kanye West (Live Earth, MTV, BET, etc.), moby, Joan Osborne, Randy Newman, Dave Chappelle, Marshall Crenshaw, Martha Wainwright, Duncan Sheik, The Smithereens, Savoy, Julee Cruise, John Flansburgh (of They Might Be Giants), Lenny Pickett (of Saturday Night Live), and Levon Helm (of The Band). She plays regularly with Will Lee (of David Letterman), Jimmy Vivino (of Conan O'Brien), G.E. Smith (of Saturday Night Live), and Garth Hudson (of The Band).
Erin is known at the Ritz-Carlton on Central Park South in NYC for her rock 'n' roll arrangements on solo harp, playing (and singing) everything from Bowie, The Beatles, Stevie Wonder and Neil Young to Aerosmith, The Police, Prince and Avril Lavigne.
On the silver screen, Erin played Sandra Mescal in the Tim Robbins' film Cradle Will Rock and appears on the soundtrack along with PJ Harvey and Eddie Vedder. Erin has sung solo on HBO's The Chris Rock Show as the Hippie Chick, and on Comedy Central's Chappelle's Show as The Pretty White Girl who sings Dave's thoughts. Erin was in the original Broadway casts of Titanic, Cabaret, and Urinetown and has twice been part of the Sundance Theater Lab in Utah, originating the role of Ilse in Spring Awakening with Duncan Sheik, and as musical director for Lil's 90th (also at the Long Wharf Theater in 2010) with Jo Bonney. In 2010-11 Erin toured with the Lincoln Center production of South Pacific as harpist and pianist.
Erin is a songwriter and screenwriter on the upcoming sci-fi film Fade To White, which Erin describes as “On the Beach meets Saturday Night Live." Her songs can be heard in several other films, including Spent, Bad Bride, and American Desi. She signed The Buddy Scott Trio to her label and their songs can be heard in the MGM film A Guy Thing. As a voice- over artist she's been heard on commercials from Coca-Cola, Match.com and Walmart to Play-Doh and Dunkin' Donuts.
Erin is the harpist on the new soundtrack for The Fantasticks, on Martha Wainwright's acclaimed debut album Martha Wainwright, on the original Broadway cast album of Sam Mendes' Cabaret, on the tour of the Lincoln Center South Pacific, in various commercials (Dunkin' Donuts, etc.), and on MTV2's Wonder Showzen.
Erin studied voice with Marni Nixon and at L'Ecole Hindemith in Switzerland and has played Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. She was a founding member of the band Wicked Felina with G.E. Smith (of Saturday Night Live), where she was a co-writer, co-singer, and played harp, guitar, flute, accordion, and hammered dulcimer. Erin's played drums with Martha & the Vandellas; she's a classically trained pianist and plays keyboards, as well as percussion, guitar, and vocals for Will Lee and Jimmy Vivino in The Fab Faux; and she plays saxophone and flute (and harp) on the Sam Mendes Cabaret soundtrack on RCA.
When playing live, Erin likes to sprinkle in a few covers at her gigs, ranging from David Bowie's “Space Oddity" or The Beatles “I'm Only Sleeping," to the Celtic classic “Danny Boy" or a Puccini aria, which she sings probably even better than The Doctor on Voyager ;-).
For more information contact Seth Cohen PR.
